The Charm
by AmethystIris628
Summary: An enchanted charm planted by Salazar Slytherin to destroy Gryffindor house has found its way into Harry's hands. When all hope for him seems lost, a small Russian orphan, named Nadia, must save him and Gryffindor from a horrible fate.
1. Timid Feelings and Melting Pins

*~New story! New story! Hahaha! They are so much fun! This one is different, just kind of popped into my head. It's a little complicated, though. Pay attention to every detail, or you'll be hopelessly lost. It's weird, I got ideas from the Phantom of the Opera, a wine cork we have, and my talented family. (Be thankful I didn't listen to my dad, he wanted me to put in a rock fight)~*  
  
Why was there a sorting ceremony anyway? It just took up time and got the rest of the school frustrated in hunger. Harry found himself thinking this as he watched the Sorting. His stomach grumbled loudly, causing Parvati to look at him with disgust. It was Harry's sixth year. He felt this time it would be much more enjoyable, as there was no Umbridge, and the Wizarding world now believed that he was telling the truth about Voldemort. He watched with increasing boredom as a small girl was called forth.  
  
"Daum, Nadia," McGonagall said in a ringing voice. The girl stumbled forward and flopped down on the stool. She had thin, dark hair and green eyes. She had a pinched, unhealthy look about her, as though she hadn't been fed properly for some of her life. When the hat was placed on her head, it said almost instantly, "GRYFFINDOR!" Harry clapped along with the rest, and he smiled at Nadia as she sat down. She looked rather startled at this, but returned the grin. Little did Harry know that this small child was to save the school from a horrible fate.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Nadia sat down a ways from the troublesome trio, and was a little shaken by Harry's smile. Then again, she had spent most of her life being in that position. It happened when you were an orphan in a large orphanage and didn't get enough food and was teased by the older children. Luckily, she was extremely intelligent, and the orphanage had recognized this. They sent her to Hogwarts, where they also believed she would be better nourished. Dumbledore, the kind man, had provided her with a place to stay over the holidays, and the proper books that she would need to attend the school. She felt very lucky, very lucky indeed.  
  
She was a bit uncomfortable, sitting around all those English people. She was afraid to talk, because she feared being teased for her Russian accent. She feared being teased all the time. Her rough life at the orphanage had shaped her into a timid, quiet, fearful girl. But Nadia was forced to talk when a kind-looking fifth year thought she looked lonely and moved over to sit next to her. Nadia was startled by her vibrant red hair.  
  
"Hi, I'm Ginny," the girl said cheerfully. "Who are you?"  
  
"N-Na-Nadia," Nadia choked out. She cringed, ready for Ginny to laugh at her high, accented voice.  
  
"That's a pretty name. Is it Russian? I don't think I've ever met anybody Russian who went here before. You must be smart; Dumbledore rarely takes people from other countries," Ginny commented. She helped herself to a baked potato.  
  
"Yeah, I'm Russian. I'm not so sure about being smart though, you see, people always tell me I'm too stupid to accomplish anything," Nadia whispered. Although Ginny seemed nice enough, some of the other kids might not be. She didn't want *them* to hear her talk.  
  
"That's not very nice. If you can get into Hogwarts, you're smart enough. And why are you whispering? It's not like it'll make this place any quieter," Ginny said loudly. It was true; the Great Hall was filled with the sounds of talking, laughter, and the clinking of forks and knives on the plates.  
  
Nadia and Ginny continued to talk. Nadia felt that she would be good if she could just stay with Ginny for the entire year, but she knew she couldn't. She'd have to find someone in her own year to be friends with, even if it meant letting them tease her. That's what all her friends at the orphanage did. But another girl, in her own year, joined their conversation. She seemed just as nice as Ginny, and when it was time for Nadia to go up to bed, she walked with her new friend, Abby.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Harry was starting to feel like he was back home again. It usually came much earlier then this, but since the fiasco of last year, he felt a little resentful towards the place at first. But one thing hadn't changed, on Friday of their first week back, he was the last one in the common room, working on his homework. While he was shuffling his papers, he drew his hand back sharply, as he had received a paper cut.  
  
"Ouch!" he hissed.  
  
He rummaged in his bag until he found a small vile, full of a yellowish liquid. It was essence of murtlap, he carried it around with him to sooth any paper cuts he received. He seemed quite prone to be getting them lately. He placed a couple of drops in the cut and felt relieved.  
  
Wanting a small break from his Transfiguration essay, he strode over to the notice board to see when the first Quidditch practice was. Katie Bell was captain of the team this year, and she hadn't given him any information on it. He rested the back of his hand on a large pin holding up a corner of the notice, and felt another twang of pain. He had put his cut on the pin, and the murtlap essence had dropped onto the pin.  
  
Harry went back to looking at the notice, when the pin caught his eye. Before, it had seemed just round and brown, completely nondescript. Now, the brown was peeling away from where the murtlap had soaked it. It seemed the solution was eating away at the pin. Underneath, Harry found a glittering charm. It had green lines crisscrossing all over it, and tiny gold spheres were inside the squares that the lines formed. It was completely clear inside, and Harry was given the impression of a decorative golf ball. For some reason, he plucked it out of the board. The sharp pin fell off the end so it was a ball. He pocketed it, not knowing why, but he felt a sudden attachment to the tiny charm.  
  
*~I took that comment on the "troublesome trio" from Draco664 lovely author, read some of their works!~* 


	2. The Song

*~Okay, well, the charm is modeled after a wine cork we have! Haha, isn't that fun? Well, in this chapter it shows the part from the Phantom of the Opera. Can you spot it? If not, I'll tell you what part at the end of the chapter.~*  
  
Harry traipsed up to his dormitory, the charm still in his pocket. He threw the charm in his trunk, undressed, and climbed into bed. As soon as he was in bed, a strange song filled his head, (oh my gosh, that rhymed!) It was smooth and alluring. He couldn't tell whether it was a voice or instruments, and he felt happy. All he wanted to do in the world was just sit there and listen to the song. It reminded him of the phoenix song, yet somehow, it seemed icy. Harry lay down on his pillows and went to sleep, but the song continued. He dreamed of wondrous things, and the next day, he asked Ron about it.  
  
"So, what do you think that song thing is?" he asked, as the song continued.  
  
"What? What song thing?" Ron asked curiously.  
  
"C-can't you hear it?" Harry asked timidly. He felt a little strange, just like the time when he didn't understand why he could see thestrals and Ron couldn't.  
  
"Are you okay, Harry? Oh, wait. It's probably something like the thestrals," Ron said. He opened the door and started down, but looked back at Harry. "Aren't you coming?"  
  
"No.you go on, I.er.I have to find my book," Harry said slowly. He watched Ron walk down the stairs. In truth, Harry wanted to stay there and listen to the song for a bit longer. It was so beautiful; it seemed to have captured his mind. But Harry had to go down to breakfast, so he reluctantly trudged down the stairs. But for the rest of the day, he couldn't get the song out of his head.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Nadia awoke with a start on Friday night. An icy, almost evil song had filled her head. She found it frightening, and peered around her hangings to see if any of the other girls had awoken. It didn't seem so, so she tip- toed over to Abby's bed and lightly shook her awake.  
  
"Abby! Abby, do you hear that song? What do you think it is?" Nadia whispered. Abby merely grunted and turned over,  
  
Nadia assumed that she was the only one to hear the song, and, hoping it was a dream, went back to sleep. She dreamed of a story her mother had told her when she was four, a couple of days before she had died.  
  
"There is a charm that is evil and exists to destroy. It sings you a song, but only orphans can hear the ethereal tune. So you shall never hear it, my child," she had said dramatically.  
  
Nadia's eyes snapped open and for the rest of the night she pondered over whom in Gryffindor tower could be an orphan other then herself. She used to think the story was a myth, but it fit. She was an orphan.and the song was evil enough. The next morning at breakfast, she decided to ask the one person who knew everyone in Gryffindor tower, Ginny.  
  
"Ginny?" she asked tentatively the next morning at breakfast. "Do you know anyone in Gryffindor who's an orphan, other then I?"  
  
"Oh sure, Harry Potter! You've heard of him, haven't you? I think he's the only one, yeah I think so. Why do you ask?" Ginny replied.  
  
"Oh.just wondering," Nadia replied. How could she have been so stupid? Of course Harry Potter was an orphan! She knew he was in Gryffindor; he had smiled to her from down the table. If Harry had the charm, it was liable to destroy him.  
  
She spent most of the day, lying on the grass under a birch tree with Abby, thinking of a plan to rid Harry of the ornament. Although she knew somewhere in her mind that it was a myth, the song had seemed so real. 'Maybe I was dreaming,' she thought. Well, she was awake for most of the night; it explained why she was so tired this morning. She decided that Harry probably didn't have the charm; it could have been something else. But she still formed the plan in her head, just in case.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Harry couldn't concentrate on his homework that day. His mind kept on drifting up to his bed, where the entrancing song had filled his mind the night before. He thought of it as "the music of the night" as it sang to him at night when he slept. He didn't talk much to Ron or Hermione, and didn't accompany them down to the grounds.  
  
While they were down on the grounds, Harry went up to the dormitory and lay on his bed, savoring the song which flowed 'round him. About fifteen minutes later, Ron burst in and told Harry that Hermione had ordered him to come down, as she said that he needed a break anyways. Harry, not wanting to anger Hermione, reluctantly followed Ron down.  
  
"What were you doing up there, Harry?" Hermione asked curiously. "Ron said that you were in bed when he got there."  
  
"I.I fancied a nap, that's all. Why didn't you let me stay up there? I was perfectly fine," Harry retorted angrily.  
  
"You need fresh air. You haven't been outside for three days. Besides, it's a lovely day. We need to enjoy the sunshine while it lasts," Hermione said airily.  
  
"Yeah, well I could've opened a window," Harry replied, raising his voice. "Don't raise your voice to me, you know perfectly well that you like being out here," Hermione said nastily.  
  
With that, Harry leapt to his feet, and stomped angrily back to his dormitory. They just didn't understand.  
  
*~Okay, there are two things from The Phantom of the Opera. The music of the night is a song in it, and the phantom sings to a girl while she sleeps. So it's tied in two ways. Haha! I am sooooooo clever! Not really though. oh well!~* 


	3. Losing Control

Disclaimer: I own only Nadia, Abby, the charm, and the plot of this story. So please don't sue, I'm broke!  
  
"Have you noticed something strange going on with Harry lately?" Hermione asked Ron a week after the charm was discovered. "I mean, he's been spending a lot of time up in the dormitory lately. It seems that he just comes down to eat and go to lessons."  
  
"It's just nerves, he'll be fine," Ron replied. But in truth, Ron didn't want to believe that anything was wrong with Harry.  
  
"But he hasn't done any of his homework. He's got himself a weeks worth of detentions from five different teachers!" Hermione whispered. They were in the library, and Madam Pince was already casting a surly eye over the pair of them.  
  
"I told you, he'll be fine. He's probably just.well I dunno, just busy with something." Ron whispered back.  
  
"Yeah.well if he doesn't improve I'm going to talk to him."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Nadia, come on! They're going to run out of food if we don't go," Abby moaned as she tugged on Nadia's arm.  
  
"I've got to go do something in the common room. I.um.I left my History book up there," Nadia said slowly.  
  
Abby's blonde head bobbed away in the crowd, but Nadia couldn't stand for long. She had been watching Harry lately, trying to find a way that she could steal up into his dormitory to search for the charm, if there really was one. But he ate fast, and then he was back in the tower.  
  
Nadia sprinted up the staircases, and gasped the password, (niffler) at the Fat Lady. She sprang up the boys' staircase and wrenched open the door. She found Harry's trunk without difficulty, as it had HARRY POTTER written across the top. She opened it and began ruffling through his clothes, searching for the accursed thing. Her heart skipped a beat as she removed a small green and gold ball. She was about to put it in her pocket, when she felt a hand grip her robes and thrust her backwards. She looked up feebly into Harry's face, which was pale and full of fury.  
  
"How dare you try to take that beautiful thing! Give it to me! I said GIVE IT TO ME!" Harry shrieked.  
  
Nadia wouldn't open her hand to Harry, but she had to when he struck her across the face. She crawled towards the door, as Harry sat, cross-legged on his bed, stroking the charm. (Think of Smeagle/Golem stroking the ring) "My precious, I won't let them take you, you'll stay here, with me," He whispered in a low voice.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Harry tramped down the stairs furiously. Hermione was forcing him to come down to the common room and finish his homework. He threw himself in a chair, snatched his homework out of his bag, and began to write so fast that he had to restart three times from all the ink blots.  
  
"Harry, slow down and at least make it look presentable," Hermione said, not looking up from her diagram of Neptune.  
  
"Oh yeah? So now I've got to make things look presentable, do I?" he said loudly.  
  
"You always have had to. Harry, why do you stay up in your dormitory all of the time now? We've been getting worried," Hermione almost pleaded.  
  
"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. There's nothing special up there. Besides, all you do is sit on your bed. What's so great about that?" Ron said slowly.  
  
"Look, you guys don't understand! Just leave me alone. I don't need you two, I don't need anyone!" Harry shouted. The common room went quiet.  
  
"You're going to get kicked out of Hogwarts if you don't start doing you're homework! McGonagall said so! I heard her; don't tell me she didn't tell you!" Hermione shrieked. She was now on her feet, her face red.  
  
Ron remained quiet, watching the row. He never was one to shout much. He thought he'd just make it worse if he interfered.  
  
"I don't need to stay at Hogwarts! I might as well go pack right now!" Harry yelled.  
  
"Fine, you know what, fine! Just go throw your life away and be a bum lying on some street corner, begging for money. Because, apparently, you don't *need* anything! Not even you two best friends!" Hermione screamed.  
  
Harry glared at her, then sat down and finished his essay in silence. After he was done, (he still had four more due) he traipsed back up the stairs and slammed the dormitory door behind him.  
  
*~Drama, so much fun. This chapter was a little shorter, but oh well. Hope you guys are enjoying it!~* 


	4. The Plan

*~Wow, people are liking the story! Well, one person.anyways.you'll find that Nadia is a little trickster, you should remember that I said she was extremely intelligent.~*  
  
After her dangerous encounter with Harry in his dormitory, Nadia had come up with an ingenious plan to rid him of the charm. The next day at breakfast, she put the plan into action.  
  
"Hi Harry!" she said breathlessly to him. Her eyes were large and she blushed as soon as he looked at her. "Um, I'd just like to say I was sorry for going into your dormitory a couple of days ago. I was looking for something I thought I saw you take up there with you."  
  
"Er-Okay," Harry replied uncertainly.  
  
Nadia beamed at him then left. She felt it was going well. If she could just pretend to fancy him for a while, he might not be suspicious when she gave it to him. She just hoped that he would stay in school long enough for her to really pound it into his head that she was absolutely entranced by him.  
  
She thought about this all the way up into the library. There she spent fifteen minutes looking through the shelves for the book she wanted. She finally found it, then sat down and started copying it down. She smiled to herself as she wrote the title: Timed Sleeping Draught.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Hi Harry, doing all right?"  
  
"Yes, Nadia."  
  
That small little girl was like a female Colin Creevey. She wouldn't leave him alone. But he didn't care much.as long as he had that song; he was the happiest person alive.  
  
He took a seat at the back of the Charms classroom, and received a contemptuous glare from Hermione and Ron as they sat up towards the front. Harry had grown distant from them in the past month. They had been having so many rows about his time in his dormitory that he stopped speaking to them altogether. They didn't hear the song. They didn't know anything about it. Little did he know, Hermione and Ron had gone up to speak with Dumbledore about it.  
  
"Yes.I see your point. I will talk to Harry for you," Dumbledore had said to them.  
  
Halfway through class, Harry had received a summon from Dumbledore.  
  
"You wanted to see me, Professor?" Harry asked as he took a seat in the familiar office.  
  
"Yes, Harry," Dumbledore replied. "I was wondering.is there anything you wish to tell me? Anything at all?"  
  
Harry looked innocently back into the old man's eyes. "No, sir."  
  
Dumbledore gave him a knowing look, and then said, "Very well, you may go."  
  
Dumbledore watched Harry leave his office, knowing that something was wrong with him. He would let Harry find his own way out. He had done it so well for the past five years, there was no reason he couldn't do it now.  
  
There was a knock at the door. Dumbledore opened it and looked down on the pointed, pale face of Draco Malfoy.  
  
"Come in, Draco," he said pleasantly. "What do you want?"  
  
"I'd like to make a complaint about Potter, Professor," Draco said, smirking. "You see, he hasn't been up to scratch lately. He hasn't been doing his homework, and he doesn't seem to care. I believe my father always told you that Potter wasn't any good. He believes that we've had enough of him."  
  
"That, Draco," Dumbledore rumbled, wiping the smirk off of Malfoy's face, "is for me to decide."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Nadia closed the door to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom behind her, and walked swiftly towards the last stall. She was carrying a small cauldron, and potion supplies from the student cupboard. She created blue, waterproof flames (just like Hermione did) in the toilet, and began to concoct her potion. She felt that Harry would already think she held him in awe. She only hoped that the potion would be ready by dinner. An hour later, she had created a perfect Timed Sleeping Draught. She then took a cupcake out of her pocket, unscrewed the top of it with her wand, and filled it with some of the mixture.  
  
She still had half an hour before dinner. She left the bathroom, and went in search of Ginny. When she had found her in the library she revealed her plan to her.  
  
"So, this charm, only orphans can hear it?" Ginny asked slowly.  
  
"Yes, and it will destroy Gryffindor unless we get rid of it!" Nadia said urgently.  
  
"So why aren't you enchanted, but Harry is?" Ginny whispered.  
  
"I don't know, that's not the point."  
  
"So why are you telling me all of this?" "I needed to ask if I could borrow your broomstick."  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Okay, thanks!"  
  
Ginny and Nadia made their way back down to dinner. But little did they know, another person was listening to their conversation in the library.  
  
*~Ha! Cliffhanger! And I still haven't told you Nadia's plan! You are frustrated, right? I hope so, that's what I was going for.~* 


	5. Cupcakes and Duels

*~Okay, this story has been going faster then I hoped it would, but I didn't want to bore you with fights that were on the same topic and they said the same thing. You've already gotten the idea, but I'll try to draw out these last few chapters because they're confusing.~*  
  
"Harry?" Nadia asked tentatively. "I, uh, I made you a cupcake! For Halloween, you know."  
  
Harry looked at Nadia, and smiling he took it from her and bit into it. Nadia beamed at him. As soon as she turned around, Harry's grin faded and he stuffed the rest of the treat in his mouth. That girl was getting to be a bit too obsessed with him.  
  
After dinner, Harry was feeling strangely tired, so he went to bed early. He was surprised, as he grew more tired in bed, the song grew quieter. He eventually drifted off to sleep, the quietest he had had in over a month.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Nadia lay awake, listening to the horrid song until she was sure it was midnight. Silently, she stepped out of bed, grabbed Ginny's broom, and slid open the window. Not one of her bedmates had stirred. She had learned how to creep around at night, because at the orphanage that was the only way she could steal food. And if one of her inmates woke up, she would receive a beating.  
  
She climbed out of the window, so she was standing on the narrow ledge. Very carefully, she mounted the broom and kicked off. She turned around, closed the window and glided over to the boys' side of the tower. She remembered Harry's dormitory had been the highest, so she ascended to the highest set of windows. She chose one, opened it, and slipped inside.  
  
Nadia had guessed right, the song was louder in here, but the potion she had given Harry blocked out the sound from him. She went over to Harry's trunk, and ruffled through his possessions. She found the charm without difficulty, and on her way through, she had also come across an invisibility cloak. She adorned the cloak, pocketed the charm, and strode down the stairs. She walked silently through the halls, not knowing where Dumbledore's office was. Instead, she searched for Nearly-Headless Nick. She found him after about an hour, and threw off the cloak.  
  
"Nick!" she hissed. "Nick, where is Dumbledore's office, and what's the password? It's urgent!"  
  
Nick, thankfully, didn't ask her why she was out of bed at midnight, but merely told her where the gargoyle was located and the password, (Bertie's Beans).  
  
Nadia strode to where the gargoyle was, and when she arrived in front of it, she threw off the cloak. She was about to say the password when a voice rang out behind her.  
  
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," it said. Draco Malfoy was walking down the hall towards her. She didn't know who he was, but he had overheard her telling Ginny of her plan. He didn't want Harry to stay in Hogwarts, so he decided he would have to stop Nadia, and make it seem as though Harry wasn't doing anything of his own accord.  
  
"Go away, I'm doing something," Nadia snapped. She had drawn her wand. If there was one thing she had learned in the orphanage, it was a wide range of hexes and jinxes. They needed to be learned for self defense.  
  
"Oh, so you're going to duel me now, are you? Do you know what you're getting yourself into?" Draco sneered as he drew his own wand.  
  
Nadia knew she was in over her head. Even though she knew her favorite hexes, she was no match for someone who had six years of practice. She decided that she wouldn't give up and let him take her to a teacher, but she would go down with a fight.  
  
When Nadia didn't lower her wand, Draco decided he would teach her a lesson. "Stupefy!"  
  
Nadia, had been hit by the curse. Her eyes were wide and glassy, and she fell over on her back, stiff as a board. He walked over to inspect her, then grabbed her feet and dragged her up the staircase to Dumbledore's office. 


	6. I believe You

*~This might not be that confusing. I thought it might be, but it's not.~*  
  
"What's this?" Dumbledore asked curiously when Malfoy had finally gotten Nadia into his office.  
  
"She was wandering around the halls, Professor. She looked like she was trying to get up to see you," Malfoy sneered.  
  
"Well, if she couldn't wait till morning to see me, then it must be something important. Wake her, please," Dumbledore said, a slight smile playing across his face.  
  
"But she was wandering the halls! You're not allowed-"  
  
"Wake her," Dumbledore rumbled.  
  
Malfoy, grumbling, muttered the counter curse, and Nadia opened her eyes, looking slightly dazed. She sat up, looking around the office, drinking it all in. It was a beautiful office, with so many little silver machines. She suddenly looked up at the headmaster and started to shake. She was in for it now. No doubt that slimy kid had fed him some cock-and-bull story and she was going to be expelled. She fought hard to hold back tears. She didn't want to go back to the orphanage; she had tried so hard here. Dumbledore walked around his desk towards her, and placed his arm around her quivering shoulders.  
  
"Why were you wandering around the halls after dark?" he asked.  
  
Nadia breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't sound angry; he sounded concerned, as though he truly cared about her well-being. She took a deep breath, and then plunged into the story of the charm. How she remembered the story her mother had told her when she first heard the evil song. How she had found the evil thing in Harry's trunk, and how she had fed him the sleeping draught to block out the song so she could steal it. She looked up at Dumbledore, awaiting his judgment, but before he could speak, Malfoy interjected.  
  
"Surely you don't believe this tale, headmaster?" he asked with a small laugh. "It seems as though she thought of it off of the top of her head!"  
  
"I do believe her, Draco," Dumbledore thundered. "Nadia, do you have the charm with you?"  
  
"Yes, sir!" she replied eagerly. She rummaged in her pocket until she found the trinket, and then placed it in Dumbledore's hand. His face hardened as he inspected the charm, looking as though he thoroughly disliked it. The charm had begun to sing again, and it almost seemed as though he could hear it. He carefully set it down on the table.  
  
"Fetch Professor McGonagall for me, Draco, and hurry," he said.  
  
Once the oak door had closed, Dumbledore swept away from Nadia and sank into his desk chair.  
  
"Sit down, you must have had a trying night," he said kindly. With these words he conjured a squashy, light purple armchair. Nadia rose from the floor, and fell into the chair. She was exhausted. Yet, she watched Dumbledore intently, waiting for him to explain the mystery of the charm.  
  
"I will reveal the tale behind this accursed thing once Harry has joined us," Dumbledore said as though he could read her mind.  
  
Few minutes later, Malfoy returned with McGonagall. She looked confused and a little scared. Her tartan robe was halfway off and flying behind her in her hurry.  
  
"Yes, Albus, what is it?" she gasped. It seemed that she had sprinted all the way up to the office.  
  
"Would you go and fetch Potter for me?" he asked kindly.  
  
McGonagall, who had obviously been expecting some kind of a catastrophe, swept from the office. Malfoy stood by the doorway for a moment or two, and then inched towards the doorway. When Dumbledore didn't object, he opened the door and started slowly down the stairs. He was obviously hoping he could overhear a bit of what Harry was being called to Dumbledore for. A few moments later, McGonagall returned with Harry.  
  
"Thank you, Professor McGonagall, you may go now," Dumbledore said quietly. She swept towards the doorway, flung it open, and flew down the steps. "Harry, does this look familiar to you?"  
  
Harry stared at the charm in Dumbledore's hand for a couple of seconds; then screamed, "You took it! Why did you take it? It's *mine*! Give it back!"  
  
"Yes, yes, it is as I had feared," Dumbledore mumbled to himself. "Harry, you must believe me, this charm is not good. I know its song may be entrancing, but you mustn't listen to it!"  
  
Harry, at these words, threw a table at the window, which smashed. He clearly wasn't happy about the fact that Dumbledore was telling him his life for the past month was evil.  
  
Dumbledore, with a sigh, turned to Nadia and said, "He is too far into the curse. He must be in his own mind to understand what I am telling him. The only way to stop the charms song is it must sink into water. I noticed you have a broomstick with you. I hope it's not yours. No? Very well then, fly out of that broken window and throw the charm in the lake then return. It will take a little bit for the curse to wear off on Harry. I will hold him back while you go."  
  
With that said, Harry shrieked, "NOOOOOO!" and dove for Nadia. She ducked out of the way, and Dumbledore said, "Impedimenta!" and Harry froze. Nadia, seeing her chance, mounted quickly and floated out of the window. 


	7. Goodbye

Nadia flew fast through the chilling October air. She shivered slightly. She now wished that she had brought her cloak along with her. She was halfway back to her dormitory when she remembered that she was supposed to be destroying the charm.  
  
Silently, she glided over the middle of the lake. She wanted to make sure that no one ever found it again, and what was the chance that they would dive to the bottom of the lake? Picking a spot, she descended slowly. Nadia wanted to make sure that it didn't float. She hovered barely an inch above the water, then let the charm drop from her hand. As it slowly sank into the murky depths of the lake, its song slowly flickered and died. From the castle she could hear a shout of fury. She knew that Harry had realized that the charm was silenced forever too.  
  
When Nadia arrived back at Dumbledore's office, half of it was destroyed. Dumbledore was calmly watching Harry wreak havoc on his office with his wand and bare hands. He would blast a silver machine from a table, and then upturn another, finally wrecking the shelves. It went on for ten minutes, until Harry sank into the middle of the floor, and let out a moan of grief, pain, and hate. He then began to sob uncontrollably into his hands, occasionally hiccupping words that sounded vaguely like "precious," "mine," and "hate them." Dumbledore let him cry for another five minutes before walking over to him and leading him in front of his desk, where he conjured another chair. Harry fell into it, still sobbing.  
  
"Harry, I know this is hard for you, but you must let it go. No matter what you may believe, that trinket would have done you more harm then good. You were already ripping apart Gryffindor house, whether you know it or not. You affected all of the fifth, fourth, and sixth years! You're just lucky this young lady realized what you were doing," Dumbledore said soothingly.  
  
Harry slowly raised his head from his hands. His eyes were red and puffy, and his cheeks had small trails on them from the continuous path of his tears. For the first time for a month, he looked on another person's face not with anger or hate, but with understanding and sorrow. The spell had been broken.  
  
"What was that thing?" he whispered.  
  
"A weapon." Dumbledore said dramatically. "It was a weapon developed thousands of years ago when Salazar Slytherin was feeling particularly resentful towards Gryffindor. It was merely a month before he left the school. He created a charm, beautiful in its form, but distorted in its purpose.  
  
"He designed it to be heard by few, and to enchant few. He knew that if only a couple people were enchanted by its tune then it would bring down the house better then if many were. The more people that were enchanted, the more they would be at peace with each other just to sit upstairs and listen. But if fewer were, then there would be more argument and disruption. He therefore started by limiting the song to be heard by only orphans. It will surprise you that I can hear it too, doesn't it?"  
  
Nadia stared at him. She had never known Dumbledore was an orphan! Nevertheless, she listened intently to the story.  
  
"But he thought that was still too much. He decided that only boys were to be enchanted."  
  
Harry interrupted. "Then how come you weren't enchanted?"  
  
"I am not a boy anymore, Harry. I am a man. Anyways, Salazar came up to Gryffindor tower one night to visit Gryffindor. While Gryffindor was coming down, Slytherin changed the charm to a pin, and quickly stuck it in the notice board. Then, he wrapped it in an enchanted paper that could only be removed by one substance."  
  
Harry interrupted again. "Murtlap essence."  
  
Dumbledore nodded, "Exactly. The idea of the pin was to destroy Gryffindor house. One or two people would be enchanted and attached to the pin. They would become distant from their friends and argue with them often. This would lead to more arguments as the others became testier. This would eventually destroy the houses unity, friendship, and regard for their teams and house points. Therefore, they would just be a group of bickering people who were bunched up into one tower.  
  
"And as more people came into Gryffindor, the others would change them into the same thing that they themselves were. Soon, there would be no Gryffindor. It would fail to exist. Yes, people would be sorted into Gryffindor, but it would be as though the house was given the Dementor's Kiss. It would be empty, a mere shell of the joy which had once existed there."  
  
Silence followed Dumbledore's speech. Harry looked as though he had been smacked in the face. He knew that it had already begun. Hermione and Ron were growing distant, blaming each other for Harry's sudden anger. The sixth years no longer cared for each other. It had begun to spread to the other years also. It seemed that Nadia had stopped it just in the nick of time. There was still time to mend broken ties with friends.  
  
Dumbledore snapped both of them back to reality. "You may go now. I expect you may want to apologize to a few people."  
  
*~Shorter, yes I know. But full of information! Just one more chapter to go, then I think I'm going to be making a LotR fic. It'll be a gag fic, making fun of the fellowship and everything. It'll probably be a diary of Legolas or Aragorn. Well anyways, hope you enjoyed this fic as much as I did writing it!~* 


	8. The End

*~I took a line out of here from Lord of the Rings. It fit, so I used it. Don't sue please! And wasn't my chapter name original?~*  
  
"Nadia, could I say one more thing to you?" Dumbledore asked as she headed towards the door. "Thank you for saving the house. I had a feeling you would have known about the charm, as it had worked its way into Russian folklore."  
  
"But why is it a Russian tale and not an English one?" Nadia asked curiously.  
  
"Because Salazar Slytherin fled to Russia after leaving the school. He had family there, and he told them about all the things he had done to sabotage the school. Eventually, fact faded into tale, tale faded into legend, and legend faded into myth, until it was almost forgotten." Dumbledore said.  
  
Nadia, feeling slightly confused, turned around and walked out the door.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"So. you were enchanted by some stupid little ball thing?" Ron asked slowly the next day.  
  
"Yeah. can you guys ever forgive me for being such an ass?" Harry said, praying they would say yes.  
  
"Of course we will! It was the charm talking, not you. You had no control over what you were doing," Hermione said, her voice slightly muffled by a large book.  
  
"Thanks," Harry said, relieved.  
  
They walked down to breakfast, chatting animatedly as though nothing strange had ever happened to them. The house was still in slight disarray, but people were starting to mend broken ties and friendships. The trio sat down at their table, and Harry spotted Nadia deep in conversation with a tall first year with blonde hair and hazel eyes. He caught her eye, and gave her a small smile. This time, she wasn't startled or shocked, but she merely returned the grin.  
  
Malfoy was extremely depressed. He hadn't gotten Harry or Nadia expelled, but merely received a detention for wandering the halls at night. Nadia had also, because although she had an important piece of information, she was still walking around the corridors well past midnight. She didn't care though, as long as she could have a peaceful night sleep she was happy.  
  
Both Harry and Nadia were begged to recall all the events of the past month. People asked what the song sounded like, what the charm looked like, what it was like to be enchanted, the regular bit. Dumbledore had kept the affair a secret, so, of course, the entire school knew.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
The school year passed as normally as any one did at Hogwarts. There wasn't even some mystery that Hermione, Ron, and Harry usually solved. Except for the occasional prank sent by the Weasley twins, Hagrid's classes with hippogriffs, (they had continued now Dumbledore said they were old enough to) and the occasional catastrophe in Transfiguration, which included Harry turning Ron into a Lethifold, and having to stun him before McGonagall could turn him back.  
  
One night Harry was walking down the corridor towards looking for Hermione and Ron. They said they were going to the library so she could tutor him in his Charms, but they hadn't been back for two hours. He stopped and rested his head against the chilling glass of one of the windows, and looked down on the moonlit grounds. There he saw a sight that made his heart leap into his throat. Hermione and Ron were walking along the grounds, hand-in-hand. They stopped directly below his third-story window, and began to kiss passionately.  
  
"Hey! I thought you two were prefects! Don't you know that there's no snogging on the grounds?" Harry yelled, half laughing.  
  
They both looked up startled, and began to laugh. Harry knew that romance was sparking among the sixth years. He and Cho had kissed only ten feet from where Hermione and Ron were standing. He finally felt like a normal teenage boy. He had no dark wizards to be worried about, no strange dreams or prickling from his scar.  
  
But he did have one thing. He knew that when he left this school, he would leave behind someone to travel in his footsteps and wreak havoc on the school as he and his friends had done. Nadia would follow in his footsteps.  
  
*~The end! Ha ha, another successful story. Well, next one should be a funny one, it'll probably only be a chapter long, but it'll take a long time to write.~* 


End file.
